Axles, pool noodles and toilet paper
Now what do axles, pool noodles and toilet paper all have in common you wanna know?
Loading our precious cars into the container is what they have in common as today was L-day (aka D-day) and after a long night yesterday, we were ready for it!
We had enough time this morning to pick up a last parcel (our safe) at the DHL office which we were hoping to have fitted to the car before leaving, but at least we can shove it into the car so we can have it installed in Malaysia.
As we were waiting for the others who still had to finish vacuum packing the last rolls of toilet paper for the first 3 months of the trip into their trucks, we opened the box and tested the safe. And that’s when the key got stuck. Not just a little stuck, but very stuck. To cut a long story short, it’s still stuck and currently sitting in our living room with the key still in it. We decided that a safe which cannot be opened is a little bit too safe for our liking….
Luckily the loading went a lot smoother.
First up was Lara. It was an easy reverse drive in with plenty of space on all sides. Tied down with 4 ratchet straps and 4 chocks she won’t be able to move for the next 3-4 weeks. Next up was the Wanderoos truck from Rob and Robyn which was reversed into the same container. She needed to be pushed in the last meter as you can’t open the doors to get out once she is in, that’s how close the fit is for these big earth cruisers. They had brought some pool noodles for cushioning, but didn’t need them in the end as the big forklift truck was used to shift her over a bit more to the middle. Quite handy having those big toys driving around.
Last today was Bumblebee, the yellow truck from Guy and Cheryl. The fit is even tighter for this one and she needed 2 smaller wheels at the back to get her in. Guy managed to reverse her into their container in one go (apart from some height and space checks). Nice work. Climbing over and under the back axle to fit the chocks and add the straps was pretty hot work (but heaps of fun).
And that was it. It’s all done. She is loaded and will be transferred to the docks later today. The ship (Xutra Bhum) will be loaded on Monday and will sail on Tuesday we have been told, taking some weeks to get to Kuala Lumpur where we will be anxiously waiting for the containers to be opened again.
our ship to get Lara across to KL (yes, she is really going on this ship)
In the mean time we are back home (thanks for the lift home Rob and Robyn and thanks for lunch Guy and Cheryl!!), wondering what we have forgotten 🙂 and getting ready for our next challenge: packing up the house and getting everything into a 10m2 storage loft.
Here are some pictures from today:
sealing the vents before loading
reversing Lara into the container
strapping Lara
Lara ready to go!
using the big toys to move the truck to the middle
Jon getting dirty
Rob & Robyn with their truck in the container (Lara is behind their truck)
ready to go!
Jude getting dirty
Guy & Cheryl and their truck Bumble Bee
Spannend hoor! Weg Lara en nu maar hopen dat alles erin zit!!! Succes met de rest van de spullen! liefs van ons xxx
We hebben al een aantal dingen ontdekt die we vergeten zijn, maar gelukkig kunnen we alles nog in onze rugzak erbij proppen. Nu effe lunchen, zo weer verder met inpakken!! Dikke kus voor allemaal!! Jx
Jon,
We’re flying out to KL on the 26th Feb. Be there 27th. Will probably be in a hotel for a couple of weeks till we find somewhere to live. Mary Anne’s phone number is .
Would dearly love to be able to catch up if possible.
Phil Tudhope
WRONG PHONE NUMBER !!
It Should Be :
Sorry
Phil.
Hi Phil, We’ll definitely catch up in KL. I have removed the phone numbers from the website just to be safe. Best way to keep in touch will be email as we’re not sure what we’re doing for phone numbers. We’ll check it regularly during those days. Really looking forward to catching up again (and meeting Mary-Anne!). Cheers, Jude
Hi globetrotters,
Het ziet er allemaal heel erg degelijk uit! Erg knap om e.e.a. zo te regelen. Dit is in ieder geval iets dat je redelijk kunt managen. Straks het avontuur en dat zal (hopelijk leuk) spannend zijn. Nog even een reactie op jullie vorige bericht: jawel die leuze heb ik in mijn werk ook altijd gehanteerd: “Meten is weten!” Met daar direct aan gekoppeld: “…en gissen is missen!” nog veel voorpret en voor daarna alle goeds!
Een hartelijke groet uit saai( zeker in vergelijking met jullie bezigheden)Oost Souburg en een dikke kus,
Annie en Theo. X
Hi Annie & Theo, leuk weer een bericht!! Altijd super om te zien wie de blog post heeft gelezen. Het inpakken (en weggooien en weggeven of verkopen) is nu begonnen, maar nu eerst even lunchen :-). Big hug weer vanuit een bewolkt, maar warm Brisbane! Jx
Nice work! We’ve done it many times. Now you can relax and catch your breath. See you Monday night. D & J
🙂
We’ll bring a map tonight, looking forward to it! No relaxing yet, today is yet another packing day and many more to come!